Vehicles having a first door and a second door with opposing hinges on the same side of the vehicle, and with no body pillar between the first door and the second door, are typically designed so that the first door and the second door seal to one another, and are thus “dependent”. That is, one vehicle door, usually the front door, must be opened before the rear door can be opened, and the rear door must then be closed before the front door can be closed. The doors are dependent so that one door can seal to the other door when the doors are closed, because there is no body pillar between the doors that the doors could otherwise seal against.
One way to allow opposing hinged doors to open independently of each other is to first slide one of the doors parallel with the body of the vehicle and away from the other door to separate one or more seals disposed between the doors, prior to pivoting the door open. In this manner, either door may be opened independently of or simultaneously with the other opposing hinged door. Additionally, in order for the opposing hinged doors to open independently of each other, each must be latched, i.e., secured, to the body of the vehicle, and not to the other door.